


What's In The Egg?

by MegLikesCookies



Series: What's In The Egg? [1]
Category: Adventure Time
Genre: Gen, Implied Relationships, Other, Plothole Fill, adventure fun times
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-26
Updated: 2016-12-03
Packaged: 2018-06-04 14:22:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6662335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MegLikesCookies/pseuds/MegLikesCookies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A few weeks after the events of Frost & Fire and 'You Blew It Finn' (an Adventure Time fanfiction written by Red Witch, linked below), Finn and Jake find a strange egg outside their tree-house. After bringing it to Princess Bubblegum for inspection, they have to tend to the egg as well as their relationships.</p><p>https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9591828/1/You-Blew-It-Finn</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sky Cow

**Author's Note:**

  * For [CMR Rosa](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=CMR+Rosa).



> If you haven't read 'You Blew It Finn', I'd definitely recommend you give it a read before hand.
> 
> This piece was commissioned by CMR Rosa of Fanfiction.net (or CRSTO20 on DeviantArt). There's also a mirror of this story up on his page, here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11915321/1/
> 
> This will have multiple chapters, which will be posted as soon as I can write 'em! Keep yer eyes peeled!

“Hey, BMO, this tea is pretty good. Who taught you how to make tea so good, BMO?” asked Jake, taking another sip from his cup.

“I made it from dandelions and water!” The robot said proudly, holding one of the flowers in their hand to prove their point. Jake gave them a thumbs-up, “Nice! I think I read about this recipe in a book somewhere. All resourceful and junk.”

BMO started to respond, but was cut off by the sound of Finn yelling outside. Jake sat up, squinting out the window at the boy on the lawn.

“Oop, sorry, BMO, gotta run. Make me s’more when we get back!” He said, stretching himself off the couch and heading out the door. The robot pouted on the table, then tried to pick up Jake’s cup. It was a bit too big, so they just sat down beside it.

 

“What’s up, dude?” Jake asked, stepping up next to Finn. The boy was squatting on the ground in front of a large egg, rubbing its shell curiously. The egg was about the same size as Jake, and had orange swirls over its red shell.

“This egg, bro. I dunno how it got here. It’s heavy, though, and I think whatever’s in it is okay.” Finn said, gently rocking it to test its weight. Jake walked around it, humming thoughtfully. “Well, if it just showed up here, then it might have fallen from somewhere. Eggs can’t walk, usually. It must be hard as a rock to survive the fall! Wonder what kinda egg it is.”

“Not sure. Probably a big thing.” Finn shrugged, tapping his finger against it. “Sky cow?”

“Nah, those things are a myth. We should take it to the Princess’s castle, have her check it out. Make sure it’s not gonna hatch into a bunch of spiders or something.”

Finn frowned at that idea, as if tasting something sour. “I dunno, that might not be a good idea. PB’s still mad at me about the whole… I.K-F.P thing a while back.”

“Oooh, you mean she’s bein’ salty about how you made Flame Princess and Ice King fight for no reason a few weeks ago?” Jake asked, making Finn wince in response.

“Yeah, thanks for reminding me. She banned me from the Candy Kingdom for a WEEK! I still can’t believe she did that!” He mumbled, standing up and folding his arms.

“Sorry, bro, I forgot about that harsh stuff. I figured you were over that stuff. And besides, you’re already by the pond. That’s gotta remind you anyway. Y’know, I think it’s gotten even bigger than it was yesterday. Guess Flame Princess really melted a lotta ice in that fight, huh?”

Finn rolled his eyes, “Well, yeah. The Candy Kingdom could have melted, too. As if PB’d let me forget! Every time I see her, she either doesn’t talk to me at all, or she won’t stop lecturing me on how I endangered everyone ever! It’s a load of bunk, bro!!”

“… She’s gonna have to forgive you eventually, man. And hey, maybe this is the egg of some endangered race or something! She might be proud of us for findin’ it! This could be our way back iiin!”

Finn looked between his brother and the egg for a moment, thinking. Finally, he seemed to reach a conclusion. “Maybe you’re right. We should at least let her figure out what it is. If I let another thing almost ruin the Candy Kingdom, I’d never hear the end of it.” He sighed. With a grunt of effort, he wrapped his arms around the egg and hoisted it into the air. Jake quickly stretched himself into a sort-of cradle to comfortably hold the egg.

“Oh. Thanks, bro.” Finn said, gingerly setting it in his flesh-tarp.

“No prob, Bob. Now let’s get going before this thing hatches and eats us.” He said with a playful laugh. Finn laughed along, but it soon died out as a pit of dread opened in his stomach. Time to face her once more. Fun.

 

Before long, they stood in front of the Princess. Well, more accurately, to the side of her. Finn fidgeted with his hands nervously, examining her expression. She hadn’t even so much as glanced at him as they arrived.

“Hm… Where did you say you found this thing again, Jake?” Princess Bubblegum asked, squinting at the egg suspiciously. They’d set it on her work-table in her lab, and she was examining it closely. Tapping here and there, rolling it over, sniffing it… Science-y stuff, y’know?

“I didn’t find it, yo. My boy Finn here found it outside the treehouse.”

“Yeah, this big shadow went over our house, s-so I went outside to see what it was, but it was already gone! And all that was there was this egg. So whatever made it has to be huge and big and maybe even rare or dangerous--“

“It’s just a dragon egg.” She cut him off curtly. “You’ve fought them before. Pesky things.”

There was a short pause as Finn tried to think of something to say, but found nothing. Wow, not even a glance? Ice-cold.

“… So, what do we gonna do with it?” Jake asked, looking between the two of them. “Go find the dragon mama? Or can we raise it as our own or something?”

“Jake, it would be extremely dangerous for someone to try to raise a dragon without any training or preparation.” Princess Bubblegum said, her tone a lot more patient toward him than to Finn.

“Aw. I think I’d be a good dad! Well, Lady Rainicorn thinks so, at least.” He said, smiling a little. “But, if you say so.”

She opened her mouth to reply, but paused. With her eyes fixed to the egg, she tapped her chin. “… Actually… If you would be willing to give it to me, I could try to tame the dragon. I can hatch it in the dungeon, and raise it to help protect the kingdom. It would be a wonderful help, I’d imagine. Loyal, trustworthy, completely safe…” She murmured, glancing spitefully toward Finn.

Finn tugged at his collar, gulping softly. “Uh, Jake and I could help you out! I mean, that sounds like a big job, and dragons must be kinda hard to tame and stuff!”

She sighed, rolling her eyes as she looked back at the egg. “… You’ll have to make sure the egg stays properly incubated around the clock. We can take shifts, but they’ll be long and boring. I don’t know you can handle the responsibility, honestly.”

“Aw, come on! I’m not a little kid!” He said, brow furrowed in determination. “I don’t think the Banana Guards can help you out with this one, so you kinda need all the compit- compla-- competent help you can get!”

The princess seemed thoroughly displeased with the idea of letting him help, but one look at Jake’s pleading gaze seemed to push her over the edge. With a resigned huff, she turned back to him. “One chance. If you mess this up, not only will I have officially lost all hope in you, I’ll also make you help the Ice King rebuild his kingdom. However long it takes. Maybe a few years.”

Finn’s eyes went wide with fear, but he nodded. “I… I’ll try my best, PB! Promise!”

She seemed to bite back a (presumably) scathing comment as she picked up the egg and headed off toward the dungeon. Jake gave Finn an encouraging smile as they followed after her, but all the boy could do was smile back weakly. Ooh, boy. This was going well.

 

Soon, the egg was resting in a make-shift nest with a low fire below it to keep it at an even temperature. The three of them were sitting in a circle around it in the middle of an unused laboratory in the lower levels of the castle. Jake was already making himself into a comfortable puddle on the floor, and Finn was attempting to follow suit. Princess Bubblegum seemed content to just sit with her legs folded on the ground.

“How long do you think the fire will last?” Finn asked after a while, trying to ease the tension.

“As long as we have firewood.” She replied flatly.

“Couldn’t we, uh… use one of those bunsy-burners? The kind you warm beakers and stuff on?” Jake asked, wiggling his legs to an unheard rhythm.

“That’s a smart idea, but dragon eggs gestate best in the heat of a true fire. A Bunsen burner might be too much heat concentrated in one area. It may seem like a subtle difference, but it might be a huge issue in the growth of a baby dragon.” She explained. The boys made a noise of understanding, nodding appreciatively.

“So, we’re gonna need more firewood soon, right?” Jake asked, pointing over at the small pile of wood.

“I suppose so.” She said, “I usually don’t need to light fires the old fashioned way… I guess we’ll need more.”

They looked at each other. Finn and Princess Bubblegum seemed to be weighing the options on if it’d be more pleasant to stay in the dark dungeon with Jake, or go and chop down some trees alone.

Before either of them could say anything, Jake stretched his arm high above their heads and announced, “I got first dibs! Seeya!”

Finn began to protest, but before anything coherent could leave his mouth, his brother was already stretching away at incredible speeds. Curse his mad fast skills!

The Princess let out an angry groan, “Great. Now we’re both stuck down here until Jake comes back. That could take forever!”

“I… I can go find him! Or, _you_ could go find him and I’ll stay here!” Finn suggested.

Princess Bubblegum scoffed, “Right. And let you get lost too? Or risk the egg hatching and leaving _you_ to deal with it? No thanks.”

Finn scratched the back of his hat. Ouch. “… Then, I guess we could, uh… talk? Pass the time and stuff?” He asked hopefully.

“I’m not in the mood for listening to your bologna.” Bubblegum said, glaring at the egg as if it was personally spiting her. “I think we both know how _that_ talk would end up, anyway. It would be a very predictable and boring conversation.”

He winced a bit, “So… You know that I want to apologize? I mean, I know I’ve tried to before, but…”

“Yep, I know. I’ve already rejected your apology more than you can count.”

“What?! But… I’ve thought of some really convincing stuff this time! I can totally explain everything!”

She crossed her arms and glared at him coldly, then said in a mocking impersonation of him said, “ _But Pee-Bee, I didn’t MEAN to put half the planet in danger! I was just too goo-goo over my babe and my own personal interest to care about that! It was all a simple goof-up, like me!_ ” She paused to take a breath, and then added, “You’re a CHILD, Finn. In every sense of the word, that’s what you are.”

He paused for a while, just looking at her with a _what the heck, bro_ expression. “… That’s cold, PB. Even for you.”

“It’s true! You’re so immature and, just… infantile!”

He frowned, obviously more than a little hurt. “Y’know, it might not be a bad thing for me to be like I am. I-I don’t know if I really am _that_ childish, but… If being a kid means I get to fight monsters and go on adventures with my bro and play pranks and stuff, then yeah! I guess I am a kid! I don’t know how to _be_ anything else!”

“Then you’re going to have to learn. Because you can’t get by on beating the snot out of monsters forever. No one can. What happens when you grow up and have a partner and kids and stuff?”

Finn seemed to be taken off guard by that. “… I don’t think I’ve got anything else I _can_ be. It’s just… not who I am.” He shrugged, pulling his knees up to his chest in a self-comforting gesture. “I get that the stuff I do and words I say can really hurt people. I do stuff that can, and sometimes does, hurt the people I care about. I mean, I’ve done that to FP, and Marceline, and you, and even Jake a few times. It’s just… hard to figure out how to grow up. I still don’t know so much junk.”

Princess Bubblegum’s expression softened a touch, but not much. “That’s something we all have to do eventually. Some earlier than others.”

The human thought for a moment, watching the small flames crackle beneath the egg. “… You know, PB, you aren’t always as mature as you try to be. I mean, you’re doing awesome at ruling the Candy Kingdom, but I can tell when you let your guard down.”

“What do you mean by that?” She asked sharply.

“Well, like… Not in a bad way. Like how you act with Marceline and dork out sometimes. And how you kinda get jealous sometimes.” He said with a little grin.

“Jealous of who?! If you’re talking about me and Marcy, we haven’t b--”

“Woah, woah, no! I meant with me and FP! L-like how when we first got together and stuff, you got all… weird.” He said, getting another long glare from her. “Y-y’know, the whole misunderstanding? How you wanted to keep the two of us… smooching and stuff. I know that it was because the reaction could, uh… put the whole earth in danger or whatever, but it still seems like at least a _little_ of your motivation came from something else.”

She spluttered, looking nearly mortified. “What are you trying to imply?! That I wanted to _smooch_ you or something?! If this is about when I lost a portion of my candy biomass, you know I wasn’t myself then! I was a child!”

“I know, I know about all that stuff, and I’m fine just being your friend. I like hanging out with you, but… The way you’ve been acting around me just makes me feel like you kinda hate me. I mean, did… any of that stuff we did back then matter? At all?”

She looked away, sucking in a slow breath. Softly, she replied, “… Finn. I don’t hate you. I’m mad at you, and I’m disappointed that you’re acting like this.”

The two looked at each other, examining the other’s expression. Princess Bubblegum’s face was solemn and tired, but there was a hint familiar warmth in her eyes. Finn, on the other hand, had a more pitiful, pleading expression. But he seemed determined to change, if it was for the best. Silently, they reached an understanding.

“I’m really sorry, Princess Bubblegum. About everything. You don’t have to forgive me right now or anything, but I don’t know what I’d do without you as my friend. You’re, like, ninety-percent of my impulse control most of the time.” He said with a little laugh, offering her a grin.

She slowly returned the smile, but her voice had a slight serious tone to it as she said, “Well… I’m still a little peeved with you. Not forever, just for right now. Give me some time, okay?”

The boy perked up, smiling widely. “O-of course! However long you need, PB!”

She nodded, looking back at the fire in front of them. After a moment, she added, “You’ve still gotta talk to Marcy, though. And she can be a lot harder to handle than me. Ah, don’t tell her I said that.”

His smile faded a little. “… Yeah, good point. I’m sure I’ll think of something.”

“I hope so. She can be a tough nut to crack. But… Just try talking to her. Be open, get honest. And, uh… if all else fails, she really likes having her hair touched. Like, if you can braid hair, she’ll love ya forever.”

“… How did you find that out?”

Her eyes went a little wide, and she avoided his gaze. “Uh… Back in the day, she and I… used to give each other makeovers and stuff. Y’know, at sleepovers?”

“Oh. Girly stuff. Makes sense.” He laughed, and the Princess discreetly wiped her brow.

 

Before long, Jake tentatively returned with a huge stack of rather sloppily cut lumber in tow. “Heeey y’all! Lil’ eggy still doin’ alright?”

“It hasn’t moved too much.” Princess Bubblegum told him, getting to her feet and moving to help him stack it. “It isn’t going to hatch any time soon, most likely. But according to my scans, it’s alive and healthy, if a bit tired.”

“Yeah, the little scamp’s had a long day. I know I’d be tired if I fell from the sky!” Jake chuckled, wiping off his hands and flopping back down in his spot. “Either of you need a break? I can watch him for a while.”

“Well… I think I’m good for now.” Finn shrugged. Princess Bubblegum nodded, “Yeah, I’m good.”

He looked between the two of them, grinning smugly. “Ol’ Jakey’s worked his magic once again!”

“Shut up!” They both laughed, pushing him. He squished like putty, making them laugh harder.

“Serious, though. Are you guys good now?”

“Eh. Not quite, but we’re getting there. This guy’s still got quite the mess to clean up.” Princess Bubblegum giggled. Finn looked rather alarmed as he asked, “Uh, you don’t mean helping out IK, right?”

“We’ll have to see. The egg hasn’t hatched yet, has it? You still haven’t filled your end of the deal!” She said with a teasing grin.

Finn swallowed hard, forcing himself to smile. “Aha, riiight…”

The boy suddenly found himself hoping that the egg would hatch sooner rather than later.


	2. Breakfast

_Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip._

It had been a few weeks since Finn and Jake first discovered the strange orange and red egg outside of their tree-house. A dragon egg, at that! For safety reasons, it was now in the basement of the Candy Kingdom castle, in an unused laboratory.

The egg itself was sitting comfortably atop a large, padded, Bunsen-burner tripod. Finn the Human sat beside it, warming his feet by the fire beneath as he glared at a leaking section of the ceiling.

_Drip. Drip. Drip._

His eye twitched slightly. He’d heard that same, repetitive dripping noise for hours on end. The Princess had specifically told them to keep a close eye on it for any signs of movement. It was supposed to hatch soon or something.

_Drip. Drip._

Even for someone who was used to the sound of Jake snoring every night (as he was currently), this was grating on his nerves like nothing else. If Princess Bubblegum didn’t get back soon, he swore he was going to stab the stupid hole in the ce--

_Drip._

“GAH!!” Finn squealed, quickly lunging to his feet and running to the spot under the leak. Jake jerked awake, spluttering as he rolled to face the source of the screaming. “Buhuhwha? Who’s gettin’ eaten?!” He gasped, obviously still out of it.

“JAKE. I NEED TO STAB THE CEILING.” Finn shouted back, picking up a beaker up off of a dusty counter and chucking it at the crack in the wall above. It shattered upon impact, and another _drip_ sounded almost mockingly moments later. The boy growled loudly, his hands tugging at the sides of his hat in aggravation.

Jake just stared at him for a moment, and then groggily rose to his feet. “… Uh. Okay. But why? You okay, bro?”

“NO!! I’M NOT OKAY! I NEED!! TO PUNCH!! THE LEAK!!” Finn screeched, jumping as high as he could toward the ceiling above. Since the ceiling was about seven feet up, his jump fell short by a large margin.

“Oooh, the drip? Yeah, that’s been buggin’ me too. Got any tape in your bag?”

Finn paused, looking down at the floor. His rage seemed to dissipate into shame at not having thought of that. “… Yeah. I do.”

Jake laughed softly, stretching his arms over and grabbing a roll of tape out of Finn’s backpack. Within moments, a long strip of adhesive strip was stuck over the crack in the ceiling. “There you go, bro. Easy peasy.”

Finn rubbed the back of his head, letting out a nervous giggle. “Ah… Sorry, I kinda just… flipped out there.”

Jake shrugged, sitting back down in his spot. “It’s no biggie. I can see why you’d be stressed out. We’ve spent a lotta time down here, and there ain’t much to do beside nap and think about life.”

The human sat down beside him, sighing softly. “And thinking about life just stresses me out more. Like, I still can’t believe FP is the king of the Fire Kingdom. Er… Queen? Yeah, queen.”

“I know. A lot can happen in a couple weeks.” Jake said, shaking his head. “Y’know, it probably doesn’t help that PB’s been letting us do all the egg-sitting. It doesn’t even do anything; this is boring as heck, bro!!”

“I seriously think I’m starting to get a little stir-crazy or somethin’.”

“I feel ya on that. The Princess should be comin’ back soon, though, so we’ll be able to go and stretch our legs a little, at least.”

“That sounds really good right now, man, not gonna lie.” He said, looking over at the door longingly.

 

It was only a few more minutes before Princess Bubblegum pushed the door open, but it felt like hours to Finn. She was clutching an armful of books, which she dropped on the floor in her usual sitting-spot.

“Hey guys. Did the egg do anything while I was gone?” She asked, brushing the book-residue off her hands.

“Nope, lil’ eggy hasn’t moved an inch. But,” Jake said, gestured to the tape on the ceiling, “Finn and I fixed a leak! Pretty sweet, right?”

She turned around to look where he was pointing, and then made a noise of approval. “Oh! Well, that’s… nice. Glad you weren’t bored, at least.”

Finn gave her a sheepish grin, “Well, uh, about that… Jake and I were hoping we could take a break for a while. I mean, we’ll be back soon, ‘cause we know the egg is gonna hatch soon, but--”

“-- But it’s boring as bunk down here! We need some air, yo!”

Princess Bubblegum shrugged, sitting down on the floor beside her books. “That’s cool. I was just gonna chill and read. Go, be merry and all that junk. I’ll call you if I need anything.”

Jake and Finn both stood up quickly, smiling from ear to ear. “Thanks, PB! We’ll be back for the next shift!” Finn called, rushing toward the door.

“No prob, Bob.” She said, flashing them a quick thumbs-up and cracked open a book, not even looking up as they ran out the door.

 

“So, where we gonna go first? Tree-house? A dungeon? The super-market?” Jake asked between pants as they sprinted down the hall. Finn laughed, and was about to reply when they both yelped out in surprise. They’d just run smack into something. Or, uh, someone, more accurately.

Marceline floated backwards from the force of their collision, and didn’t seem to recognize them at first. “Ouch! Hey, watch it, you-” She began to hiss, before the realization set in. Finn saw her look between them, going from hostile, to comfortable familiarity, then back to hostility all in an instant. “Oh. Hey Jake. Finn.” She said coolly.  
“Hey, Marceline! What’s up?” Jake asked casually, apparently not having noticed this shift as he brushed himself off.

“Nothing much. Just came to see what Bonnie’s up to. We had a hang-out sesh planned for tonight.” She shrugged, hefting a bag up higher on her back. Casually, she added, “Simon’s been kickin’ it at my place for a while. Since, y’know, he hasn’t had a place to live, and you guys treasure your space so much.”

Finn winced, not able to meet her gaze. He could see Jake making a similar expression as he chuckled, “Uh, yikes. That’s gotta suck.”

She folded her arms, looking away aloofly as she said, “Yeah, s’whatever. He hasn’t stopped talkin’ about how rough it was trying to stay with you. Y’all can be mad hostile, you know.”

“… Uh… He didn’t really… mention that to us?” Finn said, offering her an apologetic smile.

“Oh, _he_ doesn’t mind. But from what he told me, you weren’t exactly the picture of hospitality to him. He really loves you guys, even if you can be real passive-aggressive butt-trumpets to him.”

“Hey, man, that’s a little harsh!” Jake said, “You know we’re still gettin’ over his Princess-Nappin’ biz. We’ve gotta be on our toes with him.”

“Yeah, because your GRUDGE is so much more important than Simon’s dignity or whatever!” She scoffed, floating closer to the two. “He’s not a threat! He never was; I saw you guys take him down dozens of times. And you’d know that if you ever spent any time with him at all! But I’m gonna guess that _someone_ doesn’t wanna go through all the effort of actually trying to _fix_ his problems. It’s so much easier just to manipulate people into making them go away, right?”

Finn and Jake just stared at her for a moment, taking this fresh burst of anger in. Then, Jake stretched up to reach her height as he growled, “Marceline, we ain’t in the mood to argue with you about dumb junk. PB is down in the basement, just go talk to her and leave us alone!! U-uh, okay?”

Marcy fixed him with an icy stare as she slowly extended a hand-- no, a large paw-- and shoved them aside. Wordlessly, she floated past them and down the stairs they’d just come up from.

“… Man, what’s up with her? Sayin’ you’re a manipulator and junk… and then pushin’ us around in both senses of the word!” Jake grumbled, glaring after her. “Rude.”

Finn sighed as he straightened up, “No, I mean… Maybe she has a point. I think I kinda… do manipulate people? Like… I dunno. There’s been a few times I just apologize to… make stuff go away.” He said, messing with his fingers nervously.

“Aw, hey, don’t say that! You’re the most genuine, down-to-Earth bro I know!” Jake said, slapping his arm. “Look, being in that room for so long must be messin’ with you. Let’s just go outside and have fun! C’mon, where do you wanna go?”

Finn thought for a moment, then hesitantly said, “… Well, uh… I guess we could go hang out with Simon.”

Jake gave him a look, “Dude, what??? Why would you even want to? He kinda gives me the creeps, to be honest.”

“Bro. It’s the only way I can reclaim my honor. We gotta go hang with IK for the greater good.”

Jake gave him a concerned look. “… Yeesh. Bro, you can do that if you wanna, but… I think I’m just gonna go hang out with Lady. But, uh, you let me know how all of that stuff goes, ‘kay?”

Finn nodded, expression hard with resolve. “Yeah. See ya, Jake.” He said, waving as he set off down the hallway toward a side-exit. Jake sighed softly, but let him go. When he couldn’t see Finn anymore, he realized that he wasn’t sure which way was the proper exit. But he couldn’t ask Finn, since that would be awkward. So, he just… kinda wandered around for a while, slightly lost.

 

“Do-do-do~, making the house look good!” Ice King hummed, taking a picture off of the pink wall of Marceline’s living room and flipping it upside down before hanging it up again. “Dee-dee-dee, pretty for my la-dy~!” He sang. Then, added with a cough, “… Friend. My lady friend."

Marceline’s dog, Schwabl stared up at the offending man blankly from his spot on the floor. The dog let out a snort of annoyance, obviously not used to this weirdo yet. Ice King turned around at the sound of the puppy’s displeasure, and smiled at the tiny pup. “Aw, you itchy? Here, lemme give you a lil’ scratch.” He said, his back audibly popping as he bent down.

The dog slowly backed away, obviously not so cool with this idea. He kept his eyes fixed to the Ice King as he tried to make his escape. With a sharp yelp, the dog bumped right into one of the penguins in the house. The Gunter in question ‘wenk’ed in response, utterly nonplussed by the whole ordeal.

“C’mooon, lemme pet you, doggo!” Simon whined, shuffling closer with arms out-stretched. Schwabl panicked, glancing about before scampering off into the kitchen. Ice King sighed sadly, “Aw, jeez. Looks like it’s just you and me, Gunther.”

He was knocked out of his momentary sadness by a quick rap on the door. The Ice King gasped, expression lightening instantly. “Ooh, the pizza’s here! Don’t get up, I’ll get it!”  
The Ice King pulled the door open, and grinned widely at his visitor as all thoughts of the pizza he never ordered slipped away.

“Hey, IK.” Finn said, smiling at him uncomfortably.

“Finn! My main man!” He cried, clapping his hands. “What brings ya by, buddy?”

“Uh… I was… in the area, and I thought I’d stop by. See how it’s hangin’.” Finn said, chuckling nervously.

“Oh, yeah! Things are definitely hanging, my dude! Hey, why don’t you come on in? S’cold out there!” Simon said, stepping aside with a little boy. Finn thanked him and stepped in cautiously, tentatively glancing around. Of course, he’d been to Marceline’s loads of times before, and he’d spent some time with Ice King, too, but… for some reason, he felt a little weird being there without Marceline around. Like he’s invading her privacy… again. And that definitely showed in his body language.

Dismissing this train of thought for now, Finn waved to Gunter as he sat down on the couch. The penguin was clearly aware of his gesture, but instead of responding, Gunter just stared at him blankly.

The room smelled faintly of sweaty socks and freezer burn, which was almost certainly due to a certain king of ice. Finn stifled a cough as he asked a question to break the ice-- relieve the tension. “So! How ya likin’ it here, Ice King?”

“Eh, it ain’t too bad!” Simon said, moving back to the framed picture on the wall and rotating it clockwise. It still wasn’t right-side up, but that didn’t seem to be his aim. “It isn’t as exciting here as it is at your guys’ house, but I like the lady’s touch this place has. I mean, the couch is probably older than I am, but… Hey, it’s better than nothin’!”

_… Lady’s touch?_ Finn considered that as he looked around.

Marcy’s house wasn’t exactly… feminine. Sure, the living room walls were pink, as was the outside, but it wasn’t like she had a bunch of flowers and ribbons and gasoline everywhere or anything. In fact, most of the pictures on her walls were a bit disturbing to him.

Finn shrugged, “I guess so. The Tree House is kind of a dude-den, but girl’s houses-- Like Lady Rainicorn and PB-- their houses are always so… clean! My house starts to smell like funk after a month or two without being cleaned up. Honestly, I’d love to have a girl around the house, even if she wasn’t a girlfriend or whatever.”

Ice King chuckled, “Yeah! I do have a preference for being able to smooch my home-maker, though. Why do you think I wanted a Princess so bad? The Ice Kingdom needs someone to pretty it up! I’m junk at pretty stuff.”

Finn laughed softly, “Me too, bro. But I’m glad you’re not trying to kidnap ladies anymore. That’s mad disrespectful.”

“Yeeaah… Well, at least right now, I gotta be nice. I mean, Marceline is letting me crash with her, and I like it here! Have you seen her room? It’s all… hip!”

Finn glanced toward the latter to her room, and his face burned slightly. “Uh… Yeah, once or twice. It’s cool.”

“Right? And, man, is she great at her bass-stuff! I get to go to sleep to sweet tunes, most nights. Don’t get me wrong, Marcy’s no princess. But she is definitely nicer to me than real princesses!” He huffed.

Finn nodded, watching as Gunter (or, maybe that was a different one?) struggled to pull himself up on the couch. The boy reached down and pulled the penguin up, and the creature honked appreciatively. As he patted Gunter’s head, he said, “I know what you mean, man. Princesses haven’t been good to me lately, either.”

The Ice King plopped down onto the floor, resting his chin in his hands and he replied, “Whaaat? Not good to Finn the Hero? That’s impossible!”

“It’s more possible than you think. I mean, I think I really messed up with her.” He mumbled, then corrected himself, “Heck, not just one princess. Flame Princess, Princess Bubblegum... And Marceline, too, I think.”

“Woah. What did you do, bro? Ruin a Princess Party? I’ve done that before.” Simon asked, twirling his beard around his finger.

“… Uh… Well, you know how a while ago, I kinda… got you and Flame Princess to fight? Aaand kinda made her melt down most of your kingdom?” He said, wincing at his own words. The Ice King just nodded. Judging by his blank expression, he probably didn’t really grasp what was being said.

Regardless, Finn went on, “Well… PB is really upset about that. She said that I put a lot of people in danger, since some areas are flooded from all the melted ice, and the Candy Kingdom could have been melted and stuff… And the worst thing is that she’s right. I messed up. But no one is letting me forget it, even if I’m doing my best to make up for it!”

“Sheesh. That’s rough, buddy.” Simon said with a sympathetic smile. “And I KNOW Marceline is peeved at you about something. She gets all spooky whenever I talk aboutcha! Is she worried about the climate change, too?”

“… Uh… Well, to be honest, I think she’s mad because I put you in danger. Which, y’know, I understand that! I should have thought about that! But, I don’t know, she’s acting like I got FP to fight her.”

Simon tugged at the collar of his moo-moo. “Well, bro, if it helps at all, I forgive you. Marceline, though, she can hold a grudge for ages. Like, she told me about this guy a while ago who really donked her up. Sold her favorite stuffed animal, I think? Yelled at her a lot, that kinda stuff. Really manipulative, too!”

Finn nodded, looking down at the carpeting. He still felt angry about Ash. What a tool…

Slowly, a realization dawned on him that made his stomach twist. “… He was manipulative… That’s the same thing she said about me when I saw her today. You don’t think she’s… like, projecting that stuff about Ash onto me, is she?”

“Who’s Ash?” Ice King asked blankly.

“Marceline’s ex-boyfriend. That guy you were just talking about? But, he… he was an evil dude! He pushed her around and treated her like a… like a toy! I didn’t know him much, but that’s what it… seemed like…”

“Yeah, and you’re a great guy, Finn! I mean, sure, you might have made me a lil’ homeless, but it was an honest mistake! You’ve saved lots of people, and, uh…” He said, pausing to think. “Oh, and when I was kidnappin’ princesses, you hardly ever broke any of my bones! That takes skill, bro!”

Needless to say, that didn’t soothe him much. Finn shook his head slowly, rubbing his face. “… Am I really that bad? … Dang…”

“What? No, no! You’re a swell fella! And, uh… definitely a lot nicer than other people I know! Like, uh… Princess Bubblegum? She can be preeetty mean.”

“… Seriously?” He asked, squinting at him. “I honestly can’t tell if you’re joking or not.”

“No, I’m serious! She lead us BOTH on, man! I mean, she wasn’t very straight-forward with her feelings about you, right? Never was with me!”

“… You have a point. She didn’t ever really… directly turn me down… And she treats me like I’m a kid, even though I can take down monsters three-times my size.”

“Exactly! Ladies are mysterious, my bro.” Ice King said sagely. “I’d love to one day just… give her a piece of my mind, y’know?”

Finn gave him a little smile, a plan forming.

“… Hey, IK? How would you like to go visit PB?” Finn asked him.

Ice King smiled widely, nodding excitedly. “Heck yeah!! What’s the occasion?” He asked.

Finn smiled mischievously, then turned to look out the window, “I just think that she could use a nice talking to.”

Ice King clapped his hands together, “Ooh, that’s dramatic! If we were in some kind of movie or a story right now, that would be where the scene would change! Y’know, with the whole WHOOSH thing.”

Finn gave him a look, then shook his head and stood up from the couch. “Yeah. I gotcha. Let’s go, bro.”

“Oh, yeah,yeah, just a sec.” Simon said, pushing himself up with a groan. The boy winced as he heard Ice King’s joints crack and pop loudly. “Eheh, ‘scuse me. Now, just gotta… grab Gunter. Can’t leave him alone here. He’ll eat the curtains again!”

Finn just watched as Ice King hobbled around, muttering incoherently as he chased his penguin around the room. The penguin didn’t seem too thrilled about this development, waddling behind Finn’s legs in an attempt to hide.

“C’mon, lil’ guy. We won’t be there long.” Said Finn, giving it a grin as he scooped it up under his arm. It ‘wenk’ed a few times indignantly, but gave up as he lead the way outside.

 

“So, yeah, long-story short, I can’t ever go back to that grocery store.” Bubblegum said with a little giggle. Marceline gave the Princess a look as she laughed along, propping her feet up on a stack of her books.

“You are one crazy-lady, Bonnie.” She remarked, “A crazy-lady with a big ol’ egg in her basement. Y’know, you never told me what is IN this thing. Breakfast?”

The Princess snorted, “Yeah, you know how much the Candy People enjoy animal bi-products. No, this is a dragon-egg. And it’s probably gonna hatch sometime soon, so you def don’t wanna eat that thing.”

Marcy gave her a surprised look, “Woah, a dragon? In your basement? Bonnie, what are you gonna do with that thing?”

She shrugged, “Use it to protect the kingdom. And if that doesn’t work, I’ll have Finn and Jake kick its butt back to the mountains.”

“… That’s kinda risky. I mean, I’m not the princess with the kingdom and all the planning skills. But, hey, call me up if Finn ditches you. I’ve always wanted to ride a dragon.” She said, smiling playfully. But her grin faded as she added, “Wouldn’t surprise me if he did, honestly.”

Princess Bubblegum sighed softly, giving her a sympathetic smile, “You’re still mad. I understand that completely. That boy really messed up.”

She scoffed, “ _That’s_ an understatement. He almost got Simon killed! And the way he treated his own girlfriend? Like some kind of… _toy?!_ ” She growled, glaring at the floor, “Makes me wanna barf.”

Bubblegum considered this statement, and the implications behind it. “Yeah, I know what you mean. To be fair, though, Finn hasn’t ever been very, uh… mature? At least on the concept of relationships and such.” She said, making a non-committed hand gesture.

“That doesn’t excuse him, though!” Marcy said sharply, “If he _really_ can’t be bothered to treat women with respect, then… I don’t know, can we ban him from girls? Forever?”

Bubblegum laughed softly, putting her hand on Marceline’s arm. “That would be nice, but would also infringe on his personal freedoms. I’ll consider it, though.”

The vampire seemed to let go of her momentary anger, letting out a long sigh. Marceline smiled as she thought, but as she opened her mouth to say something, the door to the laboratory slammed open.

The girls watched in surprise as Gunter waddled in, with Ice King scampering in after. Finn marched in confidently, his brows furrowed.

“Princess.” Finn said sharply, “I’ve got somethin’ to say to you.”


	3. Freezer Burn

“I’ve got somethin’ to say to you.” Finn said sternly, trying to seem less out of breath than he actually was. In retrospect, perhaps running the whole way there was a bad idea.

“… What?” Princess Bubblegum asked, genuinely confused. She sat up straighter as she adjusted to the new presences in the room, and her eyes followed the giggling Ice King closely. Quietly, she hissed, “Finn, seriously, why did you bring Ice King here? This is a very sensitive situation, he really shouldn’t be--”

“Don’t try to change the subject, PB!” Finn shot back, cutting her off. “Me and IK had a nice little talk, and he made me think about some stuff. Like the way you treat me, and other people, too. ” Princess Bubblegum rolled her eyes, not nearly as impressed with that little stab as he was. She took a breath to fire back a reply, but before any words left her lips she noticed Ice King examining an ornate glass beaker that had been resting on one of the dusty worktables. “Ice King, don’t touch that, please!”

Marceline followed her gaze, wincing and moving over to him quickly. “Sorry, Simon. This thing’s expensive. Probs shouldn’t be messing with it.” She said, laughing nervously as she snatched it out of his grip. Ice King pouted, grumbling under his breath as he moved off to another part of the large room.

 “Marceline, could you try to keep him away from my stuff? And the egg--” “Hey!! I’m trying to talk to you!” Finn interrupted, voice cracking a bit. He was trying his best to sound tougher than he felt in that moment, but he got the feeling that intimidated was not what Bubblegum was feeling. In fact, judging by that ever-patient expression she’d dawned, he would have said what she was feeling was closer to pity than anything else. “Okay, okay. What do you want to say, Finn?” She said, folding her hands in her lap.

Finn sucked in a deep breath, before allowing a waterfall of words tumble out of his mouth.

“Okay… First of all, why do you have to act like that all the time? Constantly, you’re just so… condescending!! I get that you’re, like, a bajillion years old, but you don’t have to treat me like I’m an actual baby, you know? A-and, it’s not just me that you treat like that! You do it to everyone, even the candy people.” He said, pausing in his pacing to gesture toward the kingdom above them. “ _Especially_ them. You _made_ them, and you treat them like… well, either like babies, or like toys. Things that you can use and then… let go. And sometimes, it feels like you do that to me, too.” He went on, tone softening just a bit. “You let me protect the kingdom, kick monster butt, save the day and all that stuff, and then as soon you don’t need me anymore, you go back to acting like I’m just some dumb kid.”

Bubblegum butt in, her expression now almost… hurt. “Finn, come on. You know that’s not true.”

He looked up at her sharply, “But it is true! Y-you know, you always get onto _me_ about being immature, but then you won’t even admit that you might be wrong! I mean, I get that I can be a real knuckle-head sometimes, but… at least I can fess up to it.” He said with a soft laugh, shaking his head and watching Marceline try to herd Ice King into a corner. “… You know something? I think one of the reasons why you wouldn’t straight-up tell me that you didn’t want to date me was because you were afraid I wouldn’t protect the kingdom anymore if you did.”

She shook her head quickly, “Dude! That isn’t it at all! I mean, maybe the thought crossed my mind while I was crunching the numbers, but... I know that you wouldn’t do that. That’s not who you are, Finn.”

He gave her a tight-lipped smile and shrugged. “Well, you got me there. At least you still have a little faith in me.” Finn paused, recollecting himself. Finally, he looked back up, “Hey, speaking of that mess… Why didn’t you ever just come out and tell me what was up with Flame Princess? You kinda danced around the issue, when you could have just said, ‘Hey, Finn, if you kiss her, she’ll explode the Earth’. Were you… actually jealous of us?”

“I-I tried to tell you that!” She said quickly, looking over at Marceline for a second. “Of course not! I tried to tell you, but I couldn’t find the right moment to… explain it properly.” She trailed off, focusing her attention on her laced fingers. Finn just watched her, trying to see how the wheels in her head were turning.

Before either of them could say anything, though, Marceline finally got Ice King to sit down in the corner of the room with Gunter in his lap. She glided over, placing herself between him and the kneeling Princess. “Hey, Finn, why don’t you back off?” She said cooly.

“Marceline, it’s okay.” Bubblegum said softly. Marcy looked down at her, shaking her head slightly. “No, it’s not. You can’t just let him talk to you like that!”

“Dude, it’s not your job to talk for her.” Finn said, folding his arms over his chest, “If _either_ of you have a problem the stuff I’m saying, just say so! I’d _love_ to hear it. ”

Marceline laughed sharply, almost looming over him as she moved closer. “You’d love to hear what I’ve got to say, huh? That’s perfect, because I’m about done listening to you whine! I mean, seriously, if you’ve got such a big crush on Bubblegum, why are you being such a doorknob to her?”

Finn went red in the face as he glaring up at her angrily. “If you were listening to me, you’d know why I’m mad!!” He spat, standing up on his tip-toes in a futile attempt to match her height.

She laughed again, rolling her eyes. “Sorry, dude. I didn’t realize that your stupid squealing was meant to be taken seriously.”

“... You’re really gonna sink that low, man? You’re just gonna pretend that you didn’t compare me to _Ash_ earlier?? You’re such a hypocrite! You’re holding a grudge against me for still being a little weird about Ice King, while you’re holding a grudge against me for stuff I’ve apologized for!”

Bubblegum reached out from her seat on the floor, gently grabbing Marceline’s arm. “You said he was acting like Ash? Marceline, that’s just… uncalled for. I know you’re upset about all this, but that’s too much.”

She tugged her arm out of the Princess’s grip, looking between both of them as she said, “Okay, okay! It was a dumb thing to say! Whatever! I have my reasons for being mad, and you _know_ I’m right about that stuff!”

“Of course I know you feel strongly about everything that’s been going on. That doesn’t mean that it’s okay to say stuff like that! Even if you don’t really mean it, it could still really, really hurt someone.” She said gently, catching Marceline’s gaze and squeezing her hand. This time, Marcy didn’t push her away.

Finn looked between them for a moment, then said, “… PB? Isn’t saying and doing crazy, impulsive things, like… her entire personality? The first time I met Marceline, she tricked me and Jake into jumping off of a cliff because we thought she turned us into vampires that could fly. And, uh, a bunch more stuff that could have ended really badly.”

Marceline shot him a look, “So what? You guys are fine, and I was just having some fun. And anyway, no one’s been permanently hurt or anything. Unlike the stunt YOU pulled.” She hissed, “Flame Princess has been way different since then, I’ve heard. You can’t say you didn’t mess her up a little.”

“Hey, I get that! I made a mistake, and I’ve been doing my best to fix it. And Flame Princess isn’t _messed up._ She’s just… doin’ her own thing right now. Ice King has his kingdom again, and FP is healing. Everyone’s okay!”

“That’s a pretty bold statement, Finn.” Marcy said lowly, “What about everyone else? A lot of people have their homes destroyed because of the melted ice from the Ice Kingdom. And, and!! What about us? You’ve been standing there, bad-mouthing me and Bonnie for, like, an hour.” She paused to take a breath, quickly adding, “And, dude, talking about Simon like he isn’t even here is MAD disrespectful.”

Finn groaned, rubbing his face. He turned to look at the work-table that Ice King was watching Gunter scuttle around on, calling out loudly, “Hey, Simon! Dude, do you feel like I’ve been disrespecting you, bro?”

Simon looked up, took a moment to process his words, then laughed.“Phft, nah, bro. You’re just tellin’ it like it is!” He called back, waving his hand dismissively. Then, he grabbed a  big glass… thing, from the table in front of him. “Hey, while I’ve got your attention, can I look at this thingy, Princess?”

Bubblegum didn’t even seem to register that she was being spoken to as she said, “Finn, I don’t know if you’ve noticed or not, but Ice King might not be the most… sound-minded individual. He really can’t made choices for himself, or pick up on subtle emotional--” Bubblegum paused, looking over at Ice King. She gasped, “Hey, put down that Kipp generator!!”

“What, this? But you said I could--” “NONONO, that’s a hand-blown and _very_ delicate instrument!!” She interrupted, rushing over to him and struggling to get the item out of his grip without breaking it.

“She’s right, Finn.” Marceline sighed, turning her attention to Finn again. “As much as I care about him, Simon isn’t able to pick up on social junk anymore. He’s… old. He can’t tell when someone’s being mean to him, or when he’s doing stuff he shouldn’t.”

“You guys really should give him more credit.” Finn said, “When he wants to be, he really does seem to know what’s up.”

Marceline scowled at him, “What, you think I don’t want him to be better?! If anyone would have faith in him, it’d be ME. Don’t tell me how to treat Simon.”

“I’m not, jeez! Calm down!” He said sharply, “I’m just saying, maybe he isn’t--”

“You want _me_ to calm down?! Ohoho, you’re just FULL of it today!!” She laughed harshly, floating closer and forcing him to step back. “I know you’re used to being a ‘hero’ that everyone looks up to, but I’m not gonna take your crap! You’re so… full of yourself!!” She said, finger jabbing into his chest.

Finn shoved her away, “Marceline, you know that isn’t true. You’re just trying to make me mad at you!”

Marceline shoved him in return, making him stumble back into something. Princess Bubblegum shouted loudly, “Woah, woah!! Look at the egg, it’s-- ICE KING, LET IT GO!!”

Finn glanced behind him, and sure enough, he’d bumped the stand the egg was sitting on. He whipped back around, “Yeah, Marceline! Watch it! You almost made me knock over the egg!”

“Oh, because you care about it SOOO much! I bet that you’re only saying that because _she_ cares about it! You’re still hoping this will make her _like_ y--” Marceline began, but was stopped by Princess Bubblegum stomping up between her and Finn, shoving them apart.

“ _BOTH_ of you need to calm down!” She shouted, panting slightly from her previous struggle with Simon. “The egg is starting to hatch, and it might not come out right if you’re both being so hostile and loud around it! I don’t know a lot about dragon psychology, but that’d mess anybody up!”

The boy and the vampire looked at each other, then sighed in resignation. Marceline rubbed her arm, “Okay, you’ve got a point. I mean, Finn’s still being a real dipstick right now, but… I don’t wanna mess the little guy up.”

“Yeah, me either.” He agreed, giving a little laugh as he added, “Or little lady.”

Princess Bubblegum cleared her throat. “… It’s more than likely going to be female. The level of heat I’ve been keeping it at should promote its chromosomes to--”

“Woah, too much information, nerd.” Marceline said, rolling her eyes.

“I thought it was kinda interesting. I mean, I wanna know as much about this thing as I can. I’m, like… its dad. Sort of.” He said, reaching behind him to pat the egg’s shell. “I know for sure that it’s orange and cool-looking, but that’s not a lot to go off--”

To his surprise, Finn felt only air behind him. He turned, and found himself staring at empty space. The egg was just… gone.

“… Guys? Did… it already hatch?” He asked, looking around blankly.

“Huh? Did what h-…” Princess Bubblegum began, before she turned around and noticed the distinct lack of orange in the room. She gasped sharply, turning her attention to the open door. “ICE KING!! He must have taken the egg!!”

“No way! He wouldn’t have-- Why would he take that thing?!” Marceline asked, her tone more frustrated than accusing. She quickly glided around the room, peering under every work-table and sheet.

“Look, maybe he just thought it looked cool. I don’t know!” Princess Bubblegum groaned, moving to the vampire and grabbing her wrist pulling her toward the door. “There isn’t time to think about that, because if that egg gets too cold, it might not hatch at all!! We’ve gotta go, now!!”

Finn wasted no time in rushing to the door, only pausing to call behind him, “No time to lose! Let’s go!”

Bubblegum and Marceline didn’t need to be told twice, as they gave each other a little nod and headed off after him. Within moments, they’d matched his stride; Princess Bubblegum a pink blur to his right and Marceline a dark streak to his left.

Finn couldn’t help but grin excitedly as they turned a sharp corner. He could feel their hearts pounding as one, as they worked together for a common goal. … Well, for the moment, at least.


	4. Fire and Ice Cubes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The final chapter of this short series! This one took ages, but I think it shows, honestly.
> 
> I hope it was an interesting read for anyone who comes across it, and if you've come this far, go ahead and check out CMR Rosa on Fanfiction.net (or CRSTO20 on DeviantArt)! He's the guy who commissioned this whole thing, and gave me a lot of the base dialog.
> 
> If you wanna see more of this stuff kinda stuff (writing, art, my personality?), I'm WAY more active on Deviantart, Tumblr, and Facebook as MegLikesCookies!
> 
> Again, thank you all so much!

Princess Bubblegum and Marceline were close on Finn’s heels as they rushed through the castle’s twisting hallways, doorways, and staircases, until they finally burst out into the cool evening. The sun had just dipped below the horizon, leaving them all squinting as their eyes struggled to adjust to the darkness. Their pace didn’t slow for a moment as they ran, with Princess Bubblegum scanning the area in search of any sign as to where Ice King and the egg may have gone. They couldn’t have been _too_ far ahead, but… Where were they?

 Finally, she spotted some bright bits of orange shell on the road. She skidded to a stop, glancing down the alley between two buildings to find the rest of the still-slick shell on the ground. Not far from it were clawed, reptilian footprints in the soil, as if something had attempted to take flight from that spot. The Princess quickly looked up to the sky, as a weak bellow from a distance away met her ears. Apparently, it had succeeded in taking off.

“Hey, wait up!!” Bubblegum called out to the other two, rushing up to match their pace before grabbing Marceline’s arm and pointing toward something big and dark flying over the wall separating the Candy Kingdom from the outside world. _The dragon._

“Quick, head for the main gate! They’re getting away!” Bubblegum called, gesturing for them to follow her as she took off down another pathway. “This way, it’s faster!”

Without question, Finn and Marceline took off after her.

 

After they got out of the gate, they all slowed to a stop. Bubblegum was panting hard, but kept her eyes fixed to the skies as she began pacing frantically on the spot.

“Where are they? I can’t see them anywhere!” Marceline hissed between gasps. Finn would have had to agree; he couldn’t see any trace of them.

“He probably went toward the Ice Kingdom. Unless… What if he’s taking it to the forest to hide it? But, we can’t check both. If we’re wrong, then…” Bubblegum trailed off, anxiously raking a hand through her hair, “We could split up, but pitting only one of us against Simon _and_ a dragon? That wouldn’t work!”

Before anyone could reply to that, Finn straightened up. “… Do you guys hear that?” He asked. Rhythmic thudding reached their ears from… somewhere nearby. It wasn’t wing beats. It sounded more like… footsteps?

“Hey! Guys?! What’s goin’ on?” A voice echoed, from the same source as the footsteps. Finn turned quickly, searching for whoever it was. Soon, he spotted Jake running toward them from the general direction of Lady Ranicorn’s house.

“Jake!” He sighed in relief. He and the girls rushed out to meet Jake halfway, and as soon as he was within earshot, Finn explained in a rush, “Dude, we need help! I took Simon to the castle, and the egg started hatching, and then he just snatched it and now he’s gone!! We gotta get it away from him before he turns it into a dragocicle, or worse!” He paused, taking a wheezing breath, “But, first, we’ve gotta find him! Did you see him on your way over?”

“No, no, but I heard him hollering! That’s why I came runnin’! Hold on, hold on, I think I can find him.” Jake said, standing up a bit taller as he shut his eyes. As a strong wind blew by, Jake sniffed the air deeply, apparently focusing on whatever scent he found. Finally, his eyes flew open and he pointed off toward the hills, announcing, “He went that way, toward the river! He’s REALLY sweaty, and _possibly_ on fire!”

Marceline glanced off in that direction, then gave a swift nod as she scooped up Princess Bubblegum naturally. “C’mon, let’s go! No time to lose!” She said, pushing off hard and flying off. Finn started to run after them, but before he could get far, he felt Jake pluck him off the ground and plop him onto his back.

“Hold on tight, buddy!” He called, stretching his legs out as he charged after the girls. _Much_ faster.

 

Within a few short minutes of riding with Jake’s guidance, the group caught sight of the Ice King. He was down in a valley, not far from the river, cowering behind a little wall of ice with his back to the approaching team. Behind that wall, Finn could just make out something big and very purple spitting a weak stream of flames at the ice, slowly melting it. The four of them slowed to a stop a safe distance away, allowing Bubblegum and Finn to quietly hop to the ground. The Princess gingerly edged around to get a better look at the purple dragon, and seemed relieved as she softly murmured, “Oh, thank glob, she’s okay. It looks like she managed to hatch fine.”

The fire slowed to a stop as the dragon’s head turned at the sound of her voice. Finn’s hand reflexively flew to his sword in his backpack as the dragon took a step toward her; its yellow eyes fixed to the Princess. Er… at least, one of its eyes did. The other one just seemed to laze around and look at whatever it wanted.

“Finn, wait!” Bubblegum gasped, grabbing his arm to hold him back. “It’s okay, she won’t hurt me! Just, trust me, alright?”

Begrudgingly, Finn stepped back and left his sword in his bag. Not that he let his guard down, of course. He kept a close eye on them as the dragon stepped in closer on its shaky little legs. Being a freshly-hatched baby, it was barely taller than she was, but despite that, it was still big enough to make Finn sweat. It tilted its head this way and that, blinking slowly as it examined her. The Princess smiled, slowly offering it her hand. “Hello, beautiful.” She cooed, wiggling her fingers.

Before she could touch the beast, however, a blue blur staggered between them. Ice King pushed the dragon away from her, yelling, “Hey, don’t touch it! The dragon is mine!”

Princess Bubblegum seemed stunned into silence. The dragon stepped away from him in repulsion, letting out a snort of annoyance. Though, as its tongue flicked out of its mouth, it seemed clear that it was resisting the urge to flambé him as it looked between the back of his head and Bubblegum’s face. Finally, she scoffed, “Uh. No, she’s most certainly _not_ yours.”

Jake stepped up behind her, crossing his arms sternly as he added, “Yeah, we’ve been working on hatchin’ that thing for weeks, dude!! Step off.”

“So? The dragon is mine now, and there’s nothing you can do about it! And she likes me~!” He said, grinning as he reached back to rub the dragon’s snout. It hissed and nipped at his hand, but missed by a hair’s breath. He retracted the appendage, chuckling, “Ooh! Heh, well, she sure is feisty… She’s gonna be great at helpin’ me keep princesses!!”

Marceline let out a long groan, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Simon, _come on_. You’re not being serious, right? You know that you can’t _keep_ princesses against their will. Or anybody, for that matter! We’ve been over this, dude.”

He scoffed, folding his arms across his chest as he practically pouted, “Why not? That’s what Princess Bubblegum does. She has hundreds of sugar-persons, and they’re all in her kingdom all the time! And I bet they’re all against whoever Will is, too!”

Princess Bubblegum laughed sharply, glancing behind him as the dragon stepped back further from him, gently lowering itself onto the grass a good distance away. It kept its eye trained on the action, though, as Bubblegum spat back, “I don’t force _anybody_ to stay in the Candy Kingdom! The Candy People are free to come and go as they please. I don’t keep them in friggin’ cages or whatever!”

Finn and Jake traded looks. Quietly, Jake asked, “… Wait, they _can_ leave? I haven’t ever, uh… really seen anyone take advantage of that. I just figured they, uh… weren’t supposed to.”

The Princess’s cheeks grew noticeably pinker. “ _Of course_ they’re allowed to leave. I do… discourage it, of course, but I won’t throw them in jail for trying to go on a walk or anything. You know how naïve and fragile they can be! So, I mean, it isn’t exactly safe for them to go out on midnight strolls, you know?” She said, glancing over to the smugly grinning Ice King. Bubblegum cleared her throat awkwardly, “Maybe now isn’t the time for that kinda stuff.”

“Ohoho, no way, Princess! You ain’t gettin’ out of this!” He said, rubbing his hands together. “Finn, you were right about what you said earlier! Bubblegum _is_ a totally control-freak!”

Princess Bubblegum’s mouth fell open as she turned to give Finn a look. He looked away quickly, his face flushed down to his neck as the Ice King continued, “You know what, Princess? You’re getting mad at me for keeping this iguana, but I know that you were planning on keeping it for yourself! Usin’ it for conquering new lands and stuff, probably. Right, Finn?”

She was positively fuchsia by now, her hands balled into fists at her sides as she struggled to formulate a response. But, before she could get a word out, Marceline quickly floated between the two and said, “Okay, _both_ of you need to calm down! Simon, no one is going to keep the dragon, okay?” She said, letting out a confused laugh, “Finn wouldn’t say that. Come on, do you really think that Bubblegum would do something like that?”

Finn sighed heavily, rubbing his neck as he mumbled, “No, but… She was going to keep it to, uhm… protect the kingdom?”

Both of the girls looked back at him. Marceline made a face, “Dude, no. Why would you--?”

“He’s right, Marceline.” Bubblegum cut in, her tone as flat and unreadable as her expression. “He’s right. For a while, I was thinking about, maybe… keeping the dragon. I thought that, if I could tame her, maybe she could help keep the kingdom safe.”

Marceline seemed dumbfounded. “… What?! Bonnie, you have Finn and Jake! The Banana Guards! The Gumball Guardians! Why would you think you need a _dragon?!_ ”

Bubblegum winced, looking at the ground. “It was a stupid idea, okay?! For a while, I felt like I--…” She paused, looking back at Finn, before quietly mumbling, “… I felt like I couldn’t trust Finn.”

“That doesn’t make it okay! It’s one thing to keep an eye on the people you _made_ , but her?” Marceline cried, gesturing toward the dragon. It blinked at her, tilting its head. “Look at her! If you kept her locked up in the castle, it would mess her up _so_ bad. We don’t know anything about what she might grow to be!”

Bubblegum clasped her hands together tightly in front of herself, and focused her attention on her laced fingers as she struggled to think of a way to respond. Marceline let out a soft sigh, shaking her head as she glided away from the Princess. As she turned away, she found her gaze settle on the dragon.

Marceline thought for a moment, then gently outstretched her arm toward it as she drew near. The dragon examined her for a moment, then, apprehensively, leaned forward to smell her hand. Marceline smile slightly, letting out a soft sigh. “… Look at her. She’s so calm, even though we’re out here screaming at each other.” She murmured. Apparently, it deemed that her scent was acceptable, as it soon lowered its snout for her to stroke. She grinned widely, gently rubbing its scales with her fingertips.

“You guys have to let her go free.” She said, “It’s the only way she can grow up healthy and happy. She’ll find her people, and…”

“And then you’ll all feel better! It isn’t good to bottle stuff up. You just gotta, like, let that stuff go!” Ice King said, nodding knowingly. All four of them stared at him blankly, and were all equally confused. He chuckled nervously, “… What? Isn’t that what we were talking about…?”

“… Uh. No. But, I mean… if the shoe fits.” Marceline said with a shrug. She turned her attention back to the dragon, folding her legs under herself as she slowly floated down to sit on the grass. Its head followed her down, resting on her lap after she settled down.

Princess Bubblegum slowly stepped toward the two of them, her hands still clasped in front of her as she sucked in a slow breath. “… You’re right, Marceline. I can’t keep her. I won’t. That’d be an awful thing to do to her. To anyone.” She said, bending down to pat the dragon’s long neck. It let out a soft purr, and she finally cracked a smile as she arranged her skirt to sit down beside Marceline.

The vampire looked up, flashing a grin to the remainder of the group. “… Well, don’t just stand there. Do you guys wanna miss out on petting a freakin’ dragon?” She called.

Jake seemed to like that idea, treading over the soft grass to stand beside the beast. After a brief moment of deliberation, he gently sat down beside it. “Alrighty, pleeeaaase don’t bite my head off, pretty lady…” He mumbled nervously, slooowly leaning back against the dragon’s scaled side. It didn’t even budge, letting out a soft breath as he snuggled up next to it. “… Heh, she’s a little cold. I guess I can let you leach off me for a while...”

“Man, that looks good!” Ice King giggled, scampering down to the dragon’s rear-end and lying down in the curl of its tail. The dragon snorted in discomfort, kicking him just a bit to push his cold body away from its legs. He giggled obliviously, “Hey, no tickling, missy!”

“Come on, Finn, this thing’s comfier as a sack of marshmellows!” Jake called, gesturing for Finn to join them. Hesitantly, the human came closer and finally sat between Marceline and the Ice King. He kept his eyes fixed to the dragon’s spiny back in front of him, giving it a few gentle pets as a peace-offering.

Princess Bubblegum pulled her gaze away from her hands, instead looking over at Finn. “… Hey, Finn?” She asked softly. Finn looked up quickly, and she could tell from the tension in his shoulders that he was worried about what she was going to say. She took a breath, then asked, “Did you, uh… really say that I was a control-freak? Like Ice King said?”

Finn winced, gesturing vaguely as he stammered, “I-I… I mean, that’s really harsh. I wouldn’t… _say_ that--”

“Mmm, but you did, thoooough.” Ice King said sing-songily. Finn shot him a look, but Ice King went on anyway, “You know, earlier today, when you came over? You were talkin’ about how Marceline was projecting stuff about ashes on you, and you agreed with me about how mean PB and the other princesses are! And then, on the way here, you were telling about how much of a control-freak she is, and the dragon thing, and how sometimes she’s a _huge_ b--”

Finn quickly leaned over and smacked a hand over the Ice King’s mouth, laughing forcefully. “AHAHAHA, Simon!! You’re so!! Funny!! Such a funny joke!!” He said, eyes wide as he looked between the girls. Obviously, neither of them bought that.

Princess Bubblegum sighed, her expression shifting to resignation as she said, “Finn, it’s okay. … Well, maybe not that last one. But, the other stuff, I completely understand. I know that I can be mean, and bossy, and controlling. I haven’t really been… myself lately.”

“Bonnie, are you seriously going to let him talk about you like that?” Marceline asked sharply, looking between her and Finn. She did _not_ look happy.

Bubblegum put her hand on Marceline’s arm, rubbing it gently. “Come on, Marcy. He’s well-within his rights to be upset with me. With _both_ of us. Finn has been under a lot of stress, and… most of that is because of me.” She said, her tone solemn as she looked down at the softly snoring dragon in Marceline’s lap. “… I’ve been letting my pride get in the way of, ah… everything, pretty much. Do you remember that a while ago, Finn and Jake and I all got thrown into wizard jail? Just because I wouldn’t just say two flippin’ words! It doesn’t matter if ‘ _wizards rule_ ’ or not, I shouldn’t have put my own pride before my friends safety. That was so… reckless, and flat-out stupid.”

Marceline’s expression had softened as Bubblegum spoke. With a more soothing tone, she said, “Bonnie, it’s okay. Seriously, I do stuff like that all the time.”

Bubblegum shook her head, “But, it isn’t okay. I’ve been making Finn think that I don’t want him around! A-a while ago, I told him that he couldn’t ever handle a real relationship! What kind of friend _does_ that? I keep saying and doing stupid, hurtful things, and I don’t know why! I mean, yeah, of course I had reasons to be upset when Finn put people in danger, but he did his best to make up for it! I mean, I’ve put people in danger, too!” She said, glaring at her lap, “If I had just said, flat out, ‘Hey, don’t kiss Flame Princess or she’ll explode!’, everything would have been fine! But no, I put the _whole world_ in danger because I couldn’t figure out how to say it right!!”

“Woah, woah, woah! Princess, it’s okay!” Finn said quickly, his expression surprised and slightly relieved. “Seriously, I’m alright! I… I didn’t know you were so messed up about that stuff. Look, I’m really sorry if I made you feel like garbage about that junk. I totally forgive you, dude.”

“Finn, I really don’t expect you to forgive me all that stuff. You don’t have to pretend everything is okay if it isn’t.” She said gently.

“No, I’m not pretending! I’m not mad at you, seriously! I kinda like having you as my friend, Peebs, and I wouldn’t throw that away for anything.” He said, then gave her a little grin as he added, “If it makes you feel any better, you won’t have to worry about Flame Princess stuff for a long while. I’m definitely taking a break from dating. N-not because of you or anything! I just, y’know… I’m not emotionally ready for all that stuff again. With anyone.”

She nodded, some of the tension leaving her body. “Alright, that’s… good. Thank you, Finn.”

Marceline put her arm around Bubblegum, giving her a comforting squeeze. “Alright, that’s enough of that sad junk. Everyone does stupid stuff sometimes, even super rational geeks like you. Seriously, Bonnie, you could ask _anybody_ , and they’d tell you that you’re almost always the most rational, level-headed person around.”

Bubblegum relaxed into her touch, letting out a slow breath. “I know, I know… I just wish it wasn’t ‘almost always’. I lead an entire kingdom, you know? I can’t afford to mess up.”

Jake rested his chin on the dragon’s side, piping up, “Everyone is allowed to make mistakes, my dude. I mean, I know that you might, uh, be able to blow us all up with certain science-y mistakes, but… other than that, it really doesn’t matter too much. You can’t be holding onto so many negative feelings. That stuff isn’t good for anyone, _especially_ yourself.”

“Yeah! I mean, look at me!” Marceline laughed, “My whole _life_ is a mistake, but I’m still cool as a cucumber!”

From the tail-end, Ice King giggled. “I think you’re doing a pretty good job as king, Princess! Maybe even better than me!” He said, then paused for a moment. “… Well, maybe not _that_ much better. I’ve never hatched a dragon, but I’ve hatched a bunch of penguin eggs! You can’t top that.”

Princess Bubblegum laughed softly, shaking her head. “Jeez, you guys are trying way too hard to cheer me up, I swear… ”

“Yeah, but what else do we have to do? Save _another_ dragon??” Marceline teased, poking her side. The Princess squeaked, swatting her hand away with a grin. Meanwhile, Finn looked away as he pretended not to notice that little display.

Marceline glanced over at him, then paused for a moment. “Hey, uh… Finn.” She began, clearing her throat stiffly before going on, “I just wanted to say that, uh… I’m sorry about comparing you to Ash. That was _really_ messed up of me. I think I just… wanted to be angry, you know?”

He blinked slowly, seeming to have frozen in shock. After a moment, he shook himself back to life and coughed, “… Wow. Uh… Yeah, it’s totally okay. Well, it was messed up, yeah, but…” He chuckled softly, “I forgive you. Definitely.”

 The two shared a grin, and it seemed like Marceline was about to thank him for accepting her. Well, until Jake ruined the moment by blowing a raspberry into the air. “Oh, come on! You two haven’t noticed him groveling at your feet for approval for weeks?”

Finn went a bit pink in the cheeks at that, but Marceline just grinned as she pushed him playfully. “Oh, you dork! Why would you beat yourself up over that junk? I’m the one who needed to get over myself. But, uh, maybe I’d have noticed you groveling at my feet if you grew a foot or two!”

“Hey!! I’m not that short!” He laughed, pushing her in return.

“Dude, you’re like, a foot shorter than me. You have _no_ idea how hard it was to resist flipping you upside-down by your ankles when you were ragging on Bonnie and I back at the castle. Heck, I’m still considering it! Even shrimps don’t get a free-pass on picking on my closest dude.”

Bubblegum sniggered, “Your ‘closest dude’? Man, Marcy, that’s a weird way to put it.”

Marceline’s pale cheeks flushed pink as she looked away, shrugging it off as casually as she could manage. Jake giggled stupidly, hooting, “Someone’s embarraaaased~!”

“Oh, shut up!” She grumbled, shoving him off of the dragon’s side. Jake fell onto his back with a soft thud, laughing along with the rest of them.

The dragon whined softly, picking its head up to see why the source of its warmth moved. It blinked tiredly, watching Jake giggle on the grass as it shook the sleep out of its head. Finally, with a big yawn, the creature began attempting to push itself up to a standing position.

“Woah, give her some space, guys!” Bubblegum said, scooting back and standing up quickly. Everyone else followed her lead, letting the dragon have some room to rise to its feet. With a groan, it stretched its legs and wings out completely, showing off its full wingspan. At their angle, they could see the way its scales shimmered iridescently in the moonlight. Finn whistled in admiration, “Wow. She’s so different from any other dragon I’ve ever seen. A lot smaller, too… But, still a good lizard.”

Princess Bubblegum nodded, her expression just as soft as her tone as she said, “Yeah, she’s definitely small. Though, she is a baby, so that should be expected…” She mused, “She must not be from this area. I haven’t seen any other dragons like her, either… I hope she finds more of her kind out there.”

Now down with its stretch-session, the dragon shifted its attention to Princess Bubblegum. It stepped in close, tilting its head to get a good look at her as she reached out to stroke the rough ridge of its brow. It seemed to enjoy that, as it shut its eyes while she smiled contentedly. Slowly, though, her happiness seemed to fade. “… I guess you’re ready to go, yeah?” She said softly, pulling her hand away.

The dragon whined, leaning in to nuzzle her palm. She giggled softly, “No, no, I can’t keep petting you forever. I’m sorry, sweetie… I can’t keep you.”

Finn and Jake traded expressions. Both of them were pained to see Bubblegum struggle, but knew that there was no other way to go about this. Finally, Marceline stepped forward and put her hand on Bubblegum’s shoulder. “Come on, Bonnie. You’ve gotta step back and let her go. She won’t leave until you do.”

Princess Bubblegum sighed heavily, hesitating for a moment before nodding slowly and letting Marceline pull her away. The dragon followed her for a step or two, but seemed to get the hint as she shook her head. A low sort of purr emanated from its throat as it turned its attention turned toward the sky, sniffing the air and stretching out its wings as it prepared to take off.

“Be safe, okay?” Bubblegum said softly, a lump forming in her throat. “And, if you ever find yourself in the area, remember that you’ll always be welcome to return. Just, be careful with the landing, okay? And--”

The Ice King cut her off with a loud groan, raising his hands in exasperation. “Oh, come on already! If I can’t have the dragon, at _least_ let me get back in time for my soaps!”

The dragon’s wings twitched as the group gasped at the distinctive sound of Simon’s ice-powers charging up.

“Woahwoah, Simon WAIT!!” Finn shouted, diving to push the Ice King away from the dragon. He was just a _little_ too far away to make it in time, and before he could lay a hand on him, the Ice King used his power to… launch a singular, small ice cube hit the dragon’s rear-end. That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less.

It seemed to have the intended effect, at least, as the dragon squeaked and jumped into the air with one powerful flap. If the Ice King hadn’t already been on the ground from Finn’s too-slow shove, then the blast of air from the dragon’s wings would have put him there.

 “Ice King!! What the _nuts_ , man?!” Princess Bubblegum shouted, rolling up her sleeves as she began charging over to smack the snot out of him. She didn’t get far, though, as Marceline grabbed her arm tightly to hold her back.

 “Wait. Bonnie, look.” She said softly, pointing up at the sky. The Princess looked up, and it seemed as though all of her anger left her in an instant as she saw the dragon struggling to stay in the air.

Its wings flapped frantically as it fought to gain altitude, but seemed to realize quickly that it was better to slow down a bit and focus on powerful, smooth motion. After it found a good rhythm, it only took moments for it to rise far above their heads. With a victorious trill, it did a quick circle and then looked down to the people below.

“Goodbye, uh… Miss Dragon!” Ice King called, waving from his position on the ground. Princess Bubblegum waved as well, Finn noticed, as the beast turned its gaze toward the horizon and kicked its legs in the air. Its body tilted, and, almost gracefully, it headed off toward… who knows what. Bubblegum sniffled softly, and for a moment, Finn could have sworn she was tearing up.

 

For a long moment, all was still and quiet as they all watched the purple shape grow further and further away. The atmosphere was sober, and yet subtly, strangely… optimistic? As Finn glanced around, he took note of the fact that no one seemed as upset as he’d imagined they’d be. But, it was clear that they were all processing this development in their own way. … Other than Ice King. He was just lying on the grass, spacing out.

Beside him, Jake was definitely the most relaxed. Eventually, he broke the silence with a yawn and a stretch. “… Man! Was that exciting or what?” He asked with a grin, “Can you guys believe that I got to take a _nap_ with a _dragon?_ ”

“… Mm, yeah, that was pretty cool.” Marceline smiled back, kneeling down for a moment to help Ice King back up. After he was standing on his feet again, she added, “But not _quite_ as cool as me taming it.”

“That actually _was_ rather brave, Marceline.” Princess Bubblegum remarked, finally pulling her gaze away from where the dragon had been flying. “Despite being a hatchling, she still had a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth. If she wanted to, she could have taken your whole arm off.”

Marceline snorted, waving her hand dismissively. Though, at the same time, the Ice King gave a nervous chuckle, glancing back at the slowly melting ice-wall he’d been hiding behind when they found him. After swallowing thickly, he said, “… It’s a good thing she liked me, huh? I guess I’m just that charming!”

“… Eheh… Yeah. I guess so.” Finn said sheepishly, pulling at his collar.

 Ice King smiled proudly as he added, “Hey, speakin’ of charisma, do you dudes wanna hang out after this?”

Finn and Jake both paused hesitantly, until they heard Marceline clear her throat sharply. Jake’s ears twitched as he quickly said, “O-oh, yeah! For sure! At the tree house, or…?”

 “Hmm… Well, I haven’t cleaned up in a while, so… Yeah, the tree house! I’ll race you guys there!!”

“Uh… How about I let you guys get a head start? I gotta stretch first.” Finn said with a pointed look to Jake, giving a subtle nod back to the girls. Jake’s eyes flicked between him and them, then a silent understanding seemed to pass between them.

“Sure, sure. Don’t take too long, dude.” Jake said, dropping to all-fours and turning back to the Ice King. “Ready, IK?”

“Heheh, you know it, J-Dawg!!” Ice King cackled happily, picking up the ends of his tunic as he ran off down the hill. Jake made a face of disgust at seeing his chicken-legs, but raced off after him anyway.

Finn waited until they were a good distance away before heaving a sigh of relief and turning to see what the girls were up to. The two were standing by the indentation in the grass where the dragon had been resting, both appearing content and relaxed as they spoke quietly.

As casually as he could manage, Finn approached them. When he was within a comfortable range, he cleared his throat to get their attention. Bubblegum and Marceline looked at him expectantly as he began, sheepishly, “So… We’re all okay, right? Y’know, friendship-wise? No hard feelings?”

The two looked at each other, snorting to restraining a laugh. Bubblegum giggled softly as Marceline gently punched him in the arm. “Dude, relax. Yeah, everything is fine! We all traded our ‘I’m sorry’s and ‘I love you’s and all that junk. I thought we, like… just did that.”

“… Well, I don’t know if those were our exact words _,_ but…  I am really, really sorry about being so harsh lately, Finn. I shouldn’t have doubted your loyalty for a moment.” Princess Bubblegum said, smiling warmly. “The next time something like this happens, assuming it does, let’s just… talk about stuff. Y’know, sit down and hash it out over tea and biscuits. No brooding, no yelling, no shoving matches. Alright?”

Finn laughed, rubbing his arm as his face burned. “Uh, sure! I mean, I’d probably just be in it for the biscuits, but… Yeah. I don’t wanna go through this again. I’m sorry about all the stuff I said, and… the shoving match. Especially the shoving match by the _egg_.”

“Don’t worry about it, dude. I’m sure we’ll have plenty of time to beat each other up later.” Marceline said with an evil grin.

This got another laugh out of him as he said, “Y-yeah, definitely. Uh… So, if I didn’t forget anything in the lab, I’m gonna head out. I gotta save Jake from Simon, so...”

Marceline grinned, stepping a bit closer to give him a quick noogie. “Alright, kid. Good luck. And take good care of Simon, alright?” She said, patting his shoulder before nudging him off.

“Heh, I gotcha, Marceline!” He called, taking a moment to readjust his hat before giving them a wave and heading off.

“Have a good night, Finn.” Bubblegum giggled, waving back.

 

With a contended sigh, Bonnibel and Marcy turned to each other once more. Princess Bubblegum thought for a moment, then asked, “So… Wanna watch a movie back at the castle?”

Marceline seemed a bit surprised by the question, but quickly smiled. “Oh. It’s been a while since we did that. But, uh, yeah! Sure! I’m down.”

“… Mind flying me back?” She asked shyly, glancing between Marceline and the castle far off in the distance. “It’ll be forever if we walk. Er, if _I_ walk.”

Marcy rolled her eyes, scooping the Princess up in one practiced motion. “Yeah, yeah, I gotcha. But, in return, I get to pick the movie.”

“Fine, fiiiine… Can I pick the genre?” She asked, wrapping her arms around Marceline’s neck to help support herself.

With a strong push, they rose into the air. Marceline considered the request, then said, “I suppose so. What did you have in mind?”

The Princess took a moment to soak in the view as they breezed over the treetops. Finally, with a little shrug, she suggested, “Maybe a comedy?”

Then, with a look toward the direction the dragon had gone in, she tightened her grip as she looked toward the castle and added, “Nothing medieval-themed. I’ve had enough dragons today.”

“Yeah. I think we could both use a good laugh.” Marceline chuckled softly, glancing toward where Bubblegum had been looking. For a brief moment, she could have _sworn_ she saw a tiny purple figure break through the clouds in the distance. Though, she pretended that she didn’t notice that, as she muttered, “… And maybe a nap.”


End file.
